


you look like shit

by ren (mattratat)



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Established Relationship, M/M, Slice of Life, and neil has freckles, foxhole court harry potter au, it's as slice of life as it gets, mostly fluff im not gonna lie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-18 04:41:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,859
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13674456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mattratat/pseuds/ren
Summary: Neil meant to say something, but Andrew grabbed his chin, expression unreadable. He turned Neil’s face from side to side, seemingly looking for something. “You look like shit.”“I’m just cold,” Neil responded defensively. He hadn’t thought he was looking particularly bad today.“No, you’re definitely coming down with something,” Andrew dismissed Neil’s answer, dropping his hand back down to his side. “Cough.”“What-”“Just do it.”Neil, slow to pick up on what Andrew was trying to get at, forced a cough out of his throat. It was pretty pathetic, but hey, he wasn’t the most practiced in faking illness.Or, it's freezing, and Andrew doesn't want to sit through their Care of Magical Creatures lesson.





	you look like shit

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cave_canem](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cave_canem/gifts).



The Gryffindors shared their Care of Magical Creatures class with the Hufflepuffs, a fact that Neil was more than a little happy about. He wasn’t incredibly interested in the class itself, but he  _ was  _ interested in Andrew Minyard, whose presence made the class more than just bearable. Even the thought of seeing his boyfriend, however, was not enough to make Neil want to drag himself outside for the lesson. 

 

It was past the point of being freezing, but that was never enough to deter Matt (or Professor Boyd, his official title) from canceling class or even just moving it indoors. Neil had nothing against snow, as long as he was observing it from a window, inside by the fire and preferably with a steaming mug of hot chocolate or coffee in his hands. He wasn’t so much a fan of it when he had to venture out into the cold, however. Like he would have to today. In precisely seven minutes. 

 

“We should get going if we want to be on time to class,” Kevin muttered, more than a little glumly, from his seat at the table across from Neil. The pair were pretending to study in the library, when in actuality they were just going over the same Quidditch details they’d been rehashing for over a month now in preparation for their upcoming game against Slytherin. 

 

Neil checked his watch, a digital one that by all means shouldn’t work in the magical world, but it had been illegally bewitched by his mother to work anywhere at any time. It had been extremely useful when they were on the run. He should have gotten rid of it by now, but he just couldn’t seem to let it go. “We still have about five minutes before we need to head out.”

 

Kevin, to his credit, held back on a snarky remark, but apparently couldn’t resist an eyeroll. He stretched back in his chair, half of his bones cracking loud enough to draw the attention of the handful of students around them. “Whatever, Neil.” 

 

Neil couldn’t help but stick his tongue out at Kevin in a childish fashion, but he did start to pack away the notebooks they had sprawled out all over the table into his bag. They had more than half a dozen notebooks between them, all containing Quidditch information, including (but not limited to) statistics on all of the school’s current players, techniques, and more different plays than either of them could ever dream of counting. Neil couldn’t help but be proud of their little collection. After all, they both planned to go pro as soon as they left school, so it seemed at least a little justified to have a (slightly excessive) stack of notebooks between them. 

 

“Can we just skip today?” Neil asked, sighing as he started to walk towards the door.

 

Kevin gave him a sharp look. “You skipped a day last week. And another two weeks ago. At this rate you’ll be lucky to pass.”

 

Neil wanted to argue, knowing damn well that that wasn’t even true, but decided to just let it drop as they walked, lapsing into a silence that wasn’t necessarily uncomfortable. 

 

Just as he’d expected, the cold pierced through his skin and down to his bones the second they walked outside, making him shiver instantly. Kevin gave him a look, the one that clearly meant he thought that Neil was being overdramatic, but even he couldn’t stop the slight chatter of his teeth as they made their way down the path to the groundskeeper’s hut that stood as a starting place for all their lessons with Matt. 

 

Speaking of, it would seem that Matt was already setting up for class, all bundled up in an excessive amount of jackets. Even his spiky hair was covered for the day in a bright orange hat, most likely a gift from his fiance, Dan. Dan had been known to help out with the class on occasion, but it seemed like she had enough common sense to stay indoors for the day. Unlike their professor. 

 

Matt Boyd was a tall, towering man who looked rather intimidating until his face broke out in a cheerful grin, one that he would constantly be caught wearing at any and all hours of the day. He’d played with Neil on the Gryffindor quidditch team until he graduated and took up a position as their Care of Magical Creatures professor. Well, sort of professor. He was more like a professor-in-training, but Neil was certainly thankful to have him around. 

 

As Neil and Kevin approached, Matt gave them a cheerful wave. “Hey you two. Ready for a good class today?”

 

Neil nodded, forcing a smile that somewhat resembled excitement onto his features. Even on the worst of days, he could find a smile to give to Matt. He deserved at least that for all the shit he’d dealt with on Neil’s behalf. He was one of the handful of people Neil truly considered to be family, so he could always find the will to look cheerful and excited for Matt’s classes. After all, that’s what family did. “You bet.”

 

“What’re we doing today?” Kevin asked, trying to sound truly interested in a rare bout of humanity. 

 

Matt was happy to answer, launching into a semi-detailed rundown of the day’s lesson plan as more and more students began to file down the hill towards them. Neil couldn’t help but keep an eye out for one student in particular. 

 

Despite his efforts, Andrew found him first. 

 

The sound of a cracking branch signaled his approach, Neil all but whipping towards the source. 

 

By nature, Neil wasn’t exactly romantic, and he definitely wasn’t a poet, but he had to admit that the sight before him was breathtaking. Andrew, of course, would probably glare and call him a junkie if Neil said anything like that, but it was true. Andrew was walking towards him with bright light reflecting from the snow bouncing off his light hair, black and yellow cloak blowing slightly in the wind over his small frame, his bag slung over his shoulder carelessly. The dark cloak suited Andrew’s pale complexion, complimenting it rather than washing him out. 

 

Andrew came to a stop in front of Neil, annoyance written on his face. “You’re staring.” 

 

Neil blinked. “Am not.”

 

“What are you, 12?” Andrew retorted.

 

“It’s the cold. Freezing my eyes in place. It’s actually quite common, you know,” Neil replied cheerfully, knowing there was no way in hell Andrew would fall for his obvious lie.

 

“107,” Andrew said. 

 

“That doesn’t even make sense.”

 

“You irritate me enough to surpass even the laws of mathematics.” 

 

Neil wasn’t sure what to say to that, but he couldn’t keep the small smile off his freckled face. 

 

“All right, listen up!” Matt called, loud enough for even the students in the back to hear, “Today’s lesson is a partner assignment.”

 

Neil couldn’t help but zone out as Matt went on to explain the assignment. He couldn’t help it. He didn’t even notice how far gone he was until Andrew harshly snapped his fingers right in front of Neil’s face. He had to shake his head to snap out of his daze. 

 

Neil meant to say something, but Andrew grabbed his chin, expression unreadable. He turned Neil’s face from side to side, seemingly looking for something. “You look like shit.” 

 

“I’m just cold,” Neil responded defensively. He hadn’t thought he was looking particularly bad today.

 

“No, you’re definitely coming down with something,” Andrew dismissed Neil’s answer, dropping his hand back down to his side. “Cough.”

 

“What-”

 

“Just do it.”

 

Neil, slow to pick up on what Andrew was trying to get at, forced a cough out of his throat. It was pretty pathetic, but hey, he wasn’t the most practiced in faking illness.

 

Andrew rolled his eyes in response to Neil’s efforts. Still, he turned and called Matt over. Matt approached them wearily, mostly because Andrew never had anything good to say when he wanted to speak up in class. 

 

“Boyd-” Andrew started, but Matt cut him off.

 

“Professor,” Matt reminded him, frowning.

 

Andrew continued on as if Matt hadn’t spoken at all. “Neil’s feeling sick. I’m going to take him to the hospital wing.”

 

Matt raised an eyebrow, giving Neil a once over. “You feeling alright, Josten?”

 

Neil faked another cough, slightly more convincing than the first. Matt didn’t look convinced, but waved them off. “Feel better soon, kid.”

 

“I’ll do my best,” Neil said, trying to not look too happy as Andrew turned to walk back towards the castle. Neil followed suit. 

 

“So, not interested in flaming salamanders?” Neil asked.

 

“Is that what those were?” Andrew said, a clear indication that he didn’t care much for the class either.

 

Neil just shrugged. 

 

They walked back towards the castle for a few minutes in comfortable silence until Neil held out his hand, a silent offering for Andrew to take it if he wanted. Andrew did, slipping his fingers through Neil’s cautiously. Neil gave him a small, but hopefully reassuring squeeze as they finally neared the castle. 

 

“Actually, are you sure you should be holding my hand?” Neil asked with a shit-eating grin. “After all, wouldn’t want you coming into contact with any germs and getting sick.”

 

“Shut up, Josten,” Andrew replied.

 

Stepping into the castle and out of the cold was such a blessing. Neil still had no idea where exactly Andrew was leading him, but he wasn’t sure that he cared. Neil was just happy to be here, warm and safe, but most importantly with Andrew. Still, he couldn’t help but ask, “So where are we headed?”

 

“Kitchens,” Andrew answered simply. 

 

Neil was plenty happy with that answer. 

 

It didn’t take long for them to reach the fruit covered canvas that covered the entrance to the kitchen. Andrew tapped it with his wand and it swung open, the sounds of house elves working and laughing escaping out of it. 

 

“Wait here,” Andrew instructed, slipping through the entrance, effectively leaving Neil all alone in the hallway. 

 

It felt like he was gone for ages, but in actuality it was probably only a handful of minutes. Still, Neil fidgeted as he waited, bored. Finally, just before Neil began to pace, the portrait swung open, Andrew dropping out of it. His pale hands were full with what appeared to be mostly sweets, two mugs dangling from one of his hands, miraculously not spilling all over the corridor floor.

 

“They’re charmed,” Andrew explained when he caught Neil staring at the mugs. “Grab them.”

 

Neil did as instructed, taking one in each hand carefully, despite the fact that Andrew seemed to be confident in the fact that the contents weren’t going to slosh out of the ceramic containers. He still had moments where the idea of magic being used so carelessly amazed him, but that was his mother’s influence. She would have been appalled by the use of such a simple charm, even in a place where magic wasn’t traceable. 

 

He followed Andrew down the corridor and around a corner before they reached their next destination: the Hufflepuff common room. Neil was happy to enter it; the warm and cozy atmosphere enveloping them in its grasp instantaneously. 

 

The common room was fairly empty thanks to the fact that most students were still in lessons. Actually, a quick sweep of the room told Neil that it was completely empty. Whoever had been there before them had left the fire going, or perhaps it was the kind that continuously burned magically. Neil had never thought to ask before, but he suspected the latter. An eternal, cozy and warm fire seemed like a very Hufflepuff thing to have. 

 

Andrew sat down on one of the couches, expectantly looking at Neil to sit with him, which he did after setting the mugs on the small table in between all of the couches. Andrew leaned forward to grab one, waving a hand over it to release the spell he’d put on it. Neil grabbed his own mug and held it out for Andrew to do the same to. A quick sip revealed that it was coffee with a ridiculous amount of caramel flavoring, just the way he liked it. He took a long sip before setting it back down and turning to Andrew, tucking his feet under his knees.

 

“So why the need to skip out on class today?” He asked.

 

“You were freezing,” Andrew replied, as if that counted as a reasonable answer. Neil didn’t think it was, but he certainly wasn’t about to complain about it. Not even he was stubborn enough to try and say he’d have preferred to remain outside rather than come inside for coffee by a warm fire. Honestly, the fact that Andrew would want to skip class just because Neil was cold made Neil more than happy. It was almost sweet. Not that he could ever dream of saying that to Andrew, but it still was. 

 

“Thanks,” he said, his voice soft enough to almost be a whisper. 

 

“Whatever, junkie,”  Andrew replied, seemingly more interested in his hot chocolate than Neil’s gratitude. 

 

A strand of light colored hair had fallen into Andrew’s eye and Neil couldn’t help but reach out to push it away instinctually. Still, he managed to stop his hand right before he touched Andrew’s hair at all.

 

“Is this okay?” 

 

Andrew nodded, so Neil pushed the hair back behind Andrew’s ear, dropping his hand back to his own side immediately after. 

 

“I-”

 

“Stop talking,” Andrew interrupted. 

 

Neil simply shrugged in response, turning back to face the fire, grabbing his coffee mug once more. He didn’t mind sitting in silence and watching the fire. The warmth was making him feel a little sleepy, but that also might have been because he’d stayed up most of the night going over gameplays with Kevin. Either way, he let loose a yawn before taking another sip of his coffee. 

 

As if he’d been reading Neil’s mind, Andrew asked, “You stayed up ridiculously late last night again, didn’t you?”

 

“Maybe.” 

 

Andrew sighed. “Hang on.” 

 

With that, he stood and retreated towards the actual dorms, leaving a clueless Neil to sit on the couch and wait for him. Andrew was only gone for two minutes or so, returning with a book in one hand and a blanket in the other. Neil raised a questioning eyebrow at him. 

 

“You’re going to fall asleep on me at this rate. I wanted to at least have a book to keep me company,” Andrew explained, tossing the blanket at Neil.

 

Neil was now grinning unabashedly, “You know me so well.” 

 

“You’re not exactly a complicated person,” Andrew retorted, dropping back down onto the couch next to him.

 

Neil stuck his tongue out, but was plenty content to throw the blanket over his body. Andrew sat next to him with legs crossed under him, looking at Neil expectantly. 

 

“Are you planning on sleeping sitting up?” He asked.

 

Neil shrugged at that, but was happy to drop his head down into Andrew’s lap and spread his legs out on the couch. He wasn’t as sure as Andrew was that he could fall asleep, but the mention of it had seemed to make his body remember how tired it actually was. Which was why he normally preferred to ignore that being tired was even possible. But now that Andrew had mentioned it, he couldn’t help but feel the fatigue set in.

 

It didn’t help that Andrew had starting running his fingers through Neil’s hair, far more gently than most people could have imagined him to be. It was relaxing, calming, and enough to make Neil’s eyes flutter and shut. 

 

He didn’t want to fall asleep. He wanted to stay in this moment for as long as he could, wanted to stay curled up by the fire under a blanket with Andrew’s fingers running through his hair, wanted to savor every moment he got to spend with the Hufflepuff he’d come to love. 

 

In a futile attempt to keep himself awake, he asked, “What are you reading?” 

 

“‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’,” Andrew informed him.

 

“Never heard of it. Is it any good?”

 

“Well, I wouldn’t know, considering you won’t shut up long enough for me to get started.”

 

Neil smiled. “Read it to me?”

 

“You’re so aggravating,” Andrew muttered, but he didn’t turn down Neil’s request. Instead, he managed to hold the book open with one hand, balancing it on the arm of the couch. And then he began to read.

 

_ “ _ _ Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun. Orbiting this at a distance of roughly ninety-eight million miles is an utterly insignificant little blue-green planet whose ape-descended life forms are so amazingly primitive that they still think digital watches are a pretty neat idea.” _

 

Neil’s eyes closed as Andrew continued to read on. He was comfortable and warm and sleepy. But most of all, Neil was happy. And as he drifted off to sleep, he suspected that Andrew was, too.

 

**Author's Note:**

> my first aftg fic and a pitchhit gift for @jstenneil on tumblr! i saw that the exchange needed someone to hop in with a harry potter au and i just couldn't help myself,,, o o p s. hope you have a lovely valentines day and enjoyed this! 
> 
> also, big thanks to jess for reading this for me before, as well as my lovely betas mikiri and my sister, az for getting through this on such short notice. y'all are a blessing<3
> 
> you can find me on tumblr here : http://renstxne.tumblr.com/ and twitter here: https://twitter.com/renstxne
> 
> please leave a kudos and a comment if you enjoyed, and thank you so much for reading!<3


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